Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the UK Shared Prosperity Funding allocation will be for Lancashire County Council for the 2024/25 tax year.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is allocated to lead local authorities (LLAs). Details of full funding allocations for LLAs for 2022-25, including allocations for Fylde Borough Council and Wyre Borough Council, can be found here.

Lancashire County Council did not directly receive a UKSPF allocation for 2022-25. However, Lancashire has benefitted from UKSPF allocations made at a district level in the area.

An annual breakdown of 2022-25 allocations for LLAs, including 2024-25, can be found in the allocation model spreadsheet here.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the UK Shared Prosperity Funding allocation will be for Wyre Borough Council for the 2024/25 tax year.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is allocated to lead local authorities (LLAs). Details of full funding allocations for LLAs for 2022-25, including allocations for Fylde Borough Council and Wyre Borough Council, can be found here.

Lancashire County Council did not directly receive a UKSPF allocation for 2022-25. However, Lancashire has benefitted from UKSPF allocations made at a district level in the area.

An annual breakdown of 2022-25 allocations for LLAs, including 2024-25, can be found in the allocation model spreadsheet here.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the UK Shared Prosperity Funding allocation will be for Fylde Borough Council for the 2024/25 tax year.

Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is allocated to lead local authorities (LLAs). Details of full funding allocations for LLAs for 2022-25, including allocations for Fylde Borough Council and Wyre Borough Council, can be found here.

Lancashire County Council did not directly receive a UKSPF allocation for 2022-25. However, Lancashire has benefitted from UKSPF allocations made at a district level in the area.

An annual breakdown of 2022-25 allocations for LLAs, including 2024-25, can be found in the allocation model spreadsheet here.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to his oral Answer to the Question from the hon. Member for Fylde of 8 October 2024, Official Report, column 140, whether his Department has made an assessment of the viability of (a) Stanah in Blackpool North and Fleetwood constituency and (b) other alternative routes for connecting the Morgan and Morecambe windfarm to the national grid.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The Electricity System Operator (then ESO, now NESO) assessed connection to the Stanah substation for Irish Sea windfarms alongside other substations in the Northwest and North Wales as part of the Holistic Network Design.[1]

ESO identified that Stanah substation would require extension to accommodate the Morgan and Morecambe offshore windfarms. Due to limited space, a new substation would be needed, with associated time and cost. Access was challenging due to residential and recreational surroundings, and there were environmental constraints around Morecambe Bay.

In contrast, Penwortham had a more accessible footprint, fewer constraints, and better electrical connectivity to the wider network.

[1] https://www.neso.energy/publications/beyond-2030/holistic-network-design-offshore-wind

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government will take with respect to councils who do not meet the targets set out in the National Policy Planning Framework, announced on 12 December 2024.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The government expects local planning authorities to explore and exhaust all options to deliver the homes their communities need.

An authority’s ability to meet their housing need through plan-making will be tested at a public examination, which will assess whether there are any justified reasons for not being able to meet a target in full.

There are two tests of whether authorities are meeting housing need: the Housing Delivery Test, which measures authorities’ delivery record over the previous three years, and the ‘five-year housing land supply’ policy, which tests whether authorities have allocated sufficient land to provide a housing pipeline.

Where authorities fail against these tests, ‘the presumption’ in favour of sustainable development kicks in. The government are clear that ‘the presumption’ cannot be a gateway to poor quality housing, and through the revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December we have added new safeguards to ensure this is the case.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure the reforms set out in the National Planning Policy Framework, published on 12 December 2024, safeguard the beauty and character of (a) Fylde constituency and (b) other rural areas.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December retains strong safeguards in relation to the beauty and character of all parts of the countryside.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of removing the role of elected councillors from certain planning processes under the new National Planning Policy Framework on trust in local democratic services.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The National Planning Policy Framework sets out the government’s planning policies for England and how these should be applied. It makes no reference whatsoever to the role of elected councillors.

In the King’s Speech, we set out our intention to use the forthcoming Planning and Infrastructure Bill to improve local planning decision making by modernising planning committees.

The government believes that planning committees have an integral role in providing local democratic oversight of planning decisions. However, in exercising that democratic oversight, it is vital that planning committees operate as

effectively as possible, focusing on those applications which require member input and not revisiting the same decisions.

Our recently published planning reform working paper on planning committees, which can be found on gov.uk here, invites views on models for a national scheme of delegation, the creation of smaller targeted planning committees specifically for strategic development, and the introduction of a mandatory requirement for training for planning committee members.

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2024 to Question 15346 on Driving under Influence: Drugs, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of amending section 5A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 to include an option for an evidential roadside saliva sample.

Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

Since the general election, the Department has begun work on a new Road Safety Strategy, the first in over a decade. The Department will share more details in due course.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of paragraph 2.45 of the Office for Budget Responsibility's report entitled Economic and fiscal outlook – October 2024, published on 30 October 2024.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The Office for Budget Responsibility October Economic and Fiscal outlook based their forecast on the existing policy environment, and did not take account of the impact of policies that we have announced.

The Plan for Change published on 5 December 2024 set out our commitment to the ambitious milestone of building 1.5 million safe and decent homes in England this parliament.

The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December includes policies designed to support increased build out rates, including the promotion of mixed tenure development.

Our New Homes Accelerator aims to unblock and accelerate the delivery of large-scale housing developments that have for various reasons become delayed, or which are not progressing as quickly as they could be.

In addition to increasing the supply of homes of all tenures, we have committed to introducing a permanent, comprehensive mortgage guarantee scheme and to giving first-time buyers the first chance to buy homes.

We will continue to consider a range of evidence in delivering this, including OBR work, and will set out a full suite of policy measures next year when we publish our long-term housing strategy.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children are in a residential children's home over 20 miles from their family home.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The number of children looked after who were placed in secure homes and children’s homes over 20 miles from their family home on 31 March 2024 was 4,220.

This is published in Table A4 of the ‘Children looked after including adoptions’ statistical release, which is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/03be7f62-cb0e-4000-2555-08dd1b6649db.

The needs of the child are paramount when deciding the right care placement. Though the department wants to reduce out of area placements, they will always be part of the care landscape, as sometimes circumstances make it the right decision for a child to be placed elsewhere, for example when they are at risk from domestic abuse or sexual exploitation, trafficking or gang violence.

The department knows that children placed away from home can experience disruption to their lives and they can make it harder to maintain important relationships, such as with their birth family, education setting or wider community. This is why moving a child away is not a decision to be taken lightly and there are legislative safeguards around this. Regulations are clear that the decision to place a child outside of the local authority should have the child’s interest at heart and the child, family and independent reviewing officer’s views should be considered. It should be signed off by the director of children’s services, and all relevant parties should be notified, including the receiving local authority and safeguarding partners.

This government’s proposed reforms will mean less need for distance placements. Proposals on planning permissions and process will enable providers to more easily set up homes where they are most needed. Regional care cooperatives will improve local authorities’ ability to shape the local market, and the kinship local offer requirement will encourage more kinship arrangements. We are also investing £86 million in capital funding to create up to 200 additional children’s homes beds which will help ensure more of the right provision in the right places.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of children being placed in residential children's homes more than 20 miles away from their family homes on their care.

Answered by Janet Daby - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The number of children looked after who were placed in secure homes and children’s homes over 20 miles from their family home on 31 March 2024 was 4,220.

This is published in Table A4 of the ‘Children looked after including adoptions’ statistical release, which is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/03be7f62-cb0e-4000-2555-08dd1b6649db.

The needs of the child are paramount when deciding the right care placement. Though the department wants to reduce out of area placements, they will always be part of the care landscape, as sometimes circumstances make it the right decision for a child to be placed elsewhere, for example when they are at risk from domestic abuse or sexual exploitation, trafficking or gang violence.

The department knows that children placed away from home can experience disruption to their lives and they can make it harder to maintain important relationships, such as with their birth family, education setting or wider community. This is why moving a child away is not a decision to be taken lightly and there are legislative safeguards around this. Regulations are clear that the decision to place a child outside of the local authority should have the child’s interest at heart and the child, family and independent reviewing officer’s views should be considered. It should be signed off by the director of children’s services, and all relevant parties should be notified, including the receiving local authority and safeguarding partners.

This government’s proposed reforms will mean less need for distance placements. Proposals on planning permissions and process will enable providers to more easily set up homes where they are most needed. Regional care cooperatives will improve local authorities’ ability to shape the local market, and the kinship local offer requirement will encourage more kinship arrangements. We are also investing £86 million in capital funding to create up to 200 additional children’s homes beds which will help ensure more of the right provision in the right places.

Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2024 to question 19898 on Wind Power: Fylde, what account the cost assessments have taken of existing infrastructure connecting Stanah to Penwortham.

Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

National Energy System Operator (NESO) recommended the transmission infrastructure required to connect Morgan and Morecambe offshore wind projects to the grid as part of its Holistic Network Design (HND). In producing the HND, NESO assessed multiple onshore and offshore design options against future generation and demand scenarios, existing infrastructure in the National Electricity Transmission System, and total capital and operational costs. NESO then used an economic optimiser to determine the optimal economic design from the options.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the National Planning Policy Framework, announced on 12 December 2024, on infrastructure and services in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) other rural areas.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

The revised National Planning Policy Framework published on 12 December makes clear that the purpose of the planning system is to contribute to the achievement of sustainable development, including the provision of necessary infrastructure and facilities.

A number of updates have been made to the Framework to support the improvement and modernisation of public service infrastructure; ensure sufficient provision of post-16 education and early years places; and encourage a collaborative, vision-led approach to transport planning in both rural and urban areas.

Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what guidance her Department issues to planning authorities on (a) ensuring applications for lawful development certificates are properly assessed and (b) taking into account the views of local residents when assessing such applications.

Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)

My Department has published Planning Practice Guidance on the topic of lawful development certificates, which can be found on gov.uk here.